Dawn's Choice
by KatLeePT
Summary: Dawn has a life to live, and she's going to live it. Femme Slash.


"Oh, Hell," Faith snarls, looking up at the home to which she's carefully leading her girlfriend. The arm supporting Dawnie as she hobbles beside her seems to freeze, bringing the younger woman's attention to the front steps of the house too. Her face pales in dreaded anticipation just a second before her big sister comes running down the steps at them.

"FAITH! WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN DOING WITH MY SISTER?! WHY IS SHE DRESSED LIKE THAT, AND WHY DID YOU LET HER GET HURT?!"

The angry hand striking Faith's face moves before the Slayer can release Dawn and before either of the women can say anything to defend themselves. Faith's head snaps back, and she grins as she bites her bottom lip, tasting her own blood. "I always enjoy our spars, B, but not tonight, okay? We were jumped, and she wasn't targeted because she was with me. She was targeted because she's your kid sister." _Which is exactly why I should've known to say 'no' when she asked me out. Stupid, Faith. Real stupid. You knew this was coming._

"She wouldn't have been out and able to be attacked if you hadn't let her go out with her! What in the Hell were you thinking, Faith? And since when," she demands, turning her fury on Dawn, "do you dress like _her_?!" She spits the last word and jerks her head back toward Faith. "You were lucky you weren't raped!"

Dawn almost falls as Faith almost lets go of her. She grabs her hand, stilling it on her waist, but Faith's free hand slams across Buffy's mouth instead. "Nobody's raping the kid," she hisses, her dark eyes flashing wildly, "and I'm sick and damn tired of you talking to her like that. She's her own woman! She can dress however the Hell she pleases!"

"The only reason she's dressed like that is because she knows you like leather and short skirts!" Buffy wipes blood away from her lips as she looks more sympathetically over at Dawn. "I told you she'd be no good for you. Now go inside and let me deal with this."

"Buffy, let me - "

"In case you ain't noticed, B," Faith snaps with a roll of her dark and thundering eyes, "Dawn's ankle got twisted in the fight! She can't walk."

"Then I'll get Willow to help - "

Willow waves Buffy away from inside the open door to the living room. She shakes her head as Kennedy pulls her along. "I'm not getting involved in that."

"What do you mean you're not getting involved?! You're the one who told me where they were!"

"I didn't know you'd act like a nut - "

"Willow!"

"Well, I didn't! Dawn's a grown woman now, Buffy. You were dating Angel long before you were twenty one - "

"That's different!"

"Why?" Dawn interjects. "Because it was you?"

"Because he wasn't evil!" Dawn, Faith, Willow, and Kennedy all stare at her. "Well, he wasn't! Not when we were together!"

"No, he only went evil," Faith boldly points out, "after you screwed him!"

Buffy's eyes shoot wide. "You didn't!" she growls, advancing again on Faith.

Dawn limps, wishing she had the strength to stand between the two of them. "No, she didn't, Buffy! She's been gentle with me, way gentler than Spike ever was with you, and I finally got behind your relationship with him! She didn't put me in danger tonight! That group of Vamps was after me - they would have attacked me wherever I was, and I'm not staying at home all night every night just because I'm the kid sister of the Slayer!"

"But that's just it, Dawnie. You are my kid sister - "

"Which is why you should be happy for me! Faith protected me tonight, Buffy! She saved my life _and_ she saved the world by _herself_ \- "

"You helped," Faith interjects.

"Not now," Dawn mutters, "and not the point! She saved the world! She saved me, and all you want to do is jump her!"

Buffy pauses and looks long and thoughtfully at the couple before her, at how gently and protectively Faith's arm is looped around Dawnie's waist, and how determined and blazing mad Dawn looks. "She really didn't fuck you?" she asks softly.

"No! Mostly because of you!"

"And she didn't cause the attack?"

"No! I tod you: They were after me any way! If she hadn't been there, I'd be dead now!"

"And she really didn't force you?"

Faith's mouth flies open, but then shuts. "Forget it, Dawn," she growls. "I told you this was a bad idea. Let me get you inside, and then I'll deal with this."

"No! I'm not going anywhere without you! Damn it!" Dawn stomps her good foot on the wet pavement and almost falls; only Faith's grip keeps her standing. "This was supposed to be our first date! It was supposed to be special!"

"So you _did_ take my baby sister out on a date!"

"I AM NOT JUST YOUR BABY SISTER," Dawn yells, "AND _I_ ASKED _HER_ OUT!"

Buffy stares, her mouth open, her jaw slack. Faith begins to carefully maneuver Dawn around her sister. "Jack ass," Dawn adds, sticking out her tongue at Buffy as they pass by her.

"Dawn!" Faith hisses in protests, wondering if the girl has lost her patience so completely that she wants to get either herself or her sister killed tonight.

"You saved me, Faith! You saved the whole fucking world, and she just wants to condemn you! You're right: somebody could condemn her for all the Vampires she's screwed over the years!"

"Dawn," Faith growls in warning again.

"But you've been nothing but gentle with me," Dawn protests. "You wouldn't even kiss me like I wanted to be kissed!"

"Dawn, you're not old enough for that kind of tongue - "

"I'm twenty _freaking_ one! Why do you think I waited all this time to ask you out?! I knew you weren't about to ask me even though I've seen you undressing me with your eyes - "

" _Dawn!_ "

"I have, Faith! Don't try to deny it! But you're too scared to cause crap between you and Buffy again! But by God, I am a full grown woman! I know what I want, I'm old enough to have what I want, and I want _you_!" She tries to turn to stand before Faith but starts to fall. Faith catches her again, and Dawn reaches up, cupping her hands around the dark Slayer's head and pressing her mouth to hers. Her kiss is searing, and soon her tongue is slipping into Faith's mouth. Faith moans, allowing her entrance, stoking her fire, making it clear to every one gathered that she did indeed have it bad for Buffy's kid sister.

But then, realizing what she's doing, Faith rips her mouth away from Dawn's. Instead of at Dawn, she looks at Buffy. "I'm sorry," she starts to apologize.

"Faith, don't you dare - "

She flat out ignores Dawn as she continues, "If you want me to go - "

"Faith! You are not a chicken! You don't have to bow down to my sister!"

"No, but I am one of the good guys, Dawnie," Faith says as gently as she can, "and I don't want to change that. I don't want to become the person I was ever again."

"You won't," Buffy says quietly, surprising them both.

Faith's and Dawn's heads jerk up; they look at her through wide eyes. "Come again?" Faith asks.

Buffy shrugs and walks toward them, the fury gone from her face and stance. "You won't," she repeats again simply. "You'll never be that person again, Faith. You're as different as her as Angel is from Angelus. And Dawn's right. Willow's right." She almost tells her that she's right too but doesn't. "You've all accepted my bad choices in the past."

"Oh. Gee. So I'm still a bad choice," Faith says softly. Her eyes roll, but there's a small grin beginning to form on her bright, red lips.

"I didn't say that. That's not for me to decide. It's for Dawn."

Dawn looks at her sister long and hard as Buffy takes up her left side. "First things first. Let's her get in the house and get this foot well. Then you guys can try it again."

"Really?" Dawn asks softly.

Buffy looks into her sister's eyes and nods solemnly. "Your choices should be yours to make, Dawnie. I'm sorry I didn't see it before. I fought long and hard to have my choices be my own, and I'm no more in the right than Mom, Giles, or the Council was to try to make my decisions for me. Willow's right, too: You're way older than I was when I made my first bad choice."

"Faith's not a bad choice, Buffy. She's a good girl - "

Faith glances over at Dawn but stills her tongue. She's not used to be called a girl by any one.

"And one Helluva woman," Dawn concludes, "and I've been wanting tonight for a long, long time."

"Then I'm sorry it got messed up. But she really did save you, huh?"

"Yes, she saved me and the world!"

Buffy looks across her sister's dark head to Faith. "Then I guess I owe her thanks."

"Thank me by not killing me when I take your little sister out again."

Dawn grins wide between the two of them. She can deal with tonight's date being a total disaster as long as she knows she and Faith are going to get a second shot at being together. She knows she can make Faith happy and that Faith will be good to her; she just has to prove it to everybody else, including Faith.

"I won't," Buffy submits, "but if you break her heart - "

"If I break her heart, I'll kick my own ass, and then you can kick it."

Buffy grins. "Okay," she agrees, inclining her head in a nod, "fair enough."

Dawn squeals and beams where she's held between the two most important people in her world. Tonight wasn't a complete bust after all!

The End


End file.
